HoYoverse announced the ZZZ 2.2 banners during its most recent livestream, and there’s a bunch of cool characters and all, but one big, glaring gap: no Rupture characters. Okay sure, Manato’s landing in the next patch, but that’s three version updates without anything to support the brand-new combat mechanic HoYoverse introduced in the anniversary update – and a marked contrast to how the studio handled Remembrance in HSR.
Well, at least the two newcomers in version 2.2 add some much-needed attack agent options, and the reruns bring two of the best characters back for another go as well.
ZZZ 2.2 banners
ZZZ 2.2 banners phase one – Seed and Trigger
- Seed (S-rank, electric, attack)
- Trigger (S-rank, electric, stun)
- Anby (A-rank, electric, stun)
- Nicole (A-rank, ether, support)
First up when the patch goes live on Sep. 4, 2025, is seed, an electric attack agent, along with the first Evelyn rerun. Evelyn is a fire attack agent and an excellent addition to any team. Seed’s kit works in a unique way, as she designates another ally her vanguard or partner, then gets access to special, more powerful attacks by consuming their energy. Those attacks involve her giant mech fighter, including missile strikes and a flashy punch for a finishing move.
Trigger is one of the best stun agents in ZZZ. Not only can she stun quickly, but she also contributes damage while off-field thanks to her aftershock attacks, one of just a small handful of characters capable of using that damage type. Trigger does her thing quickly, which makes her ideal on a team with damage dealers who need more on-field time.
The two A-rank agents during this part of the banner phase are Anby (standard Anby, not Soldier 0 Anby), who remains a capable stun agent despite having so much competition, and Nicole, one of the best support agents who’s unsurpassed when it comes to reducing enemy defense.
ZZZ 2.2 banners phase two – Orphie & Magus and Evelyn
- Orphie & Magus (S-rank, fire, attack)
- Evelyn (S-rank, fire, attack)
- Lucy (A-rank, fire, support)
- Anton (A-rank, electric, attack)
The second round of banners should go live on Sep. 24 or 25, and it features another newcomer plus the first Evelyn rerun. The newbie is Orphie & Magus, another Aftershock character who deals damage after accumulating enough Bottled Heat and then, after using her EX Special, raises the whole team’s attack. It’s a nifty-sounding hybrid role that should, theoretically, fit into several team types and help the likes of Soldier 0 Anby deal more damage without as much heavy investment in her Drive Discs.
Evelyn excels at crowd control and can group non-boss enemies together before detonating an explosion and dealing heavy fire damage. She’s also quite challenging to use effectively, so if you’re keen on “expert” class characters, it might be worth keeping Evelyn in mind.
Lucy and Anton are the two A-ranks on this banner. Lucy remains one of the premier support units thanks to the high attack buffs she grants the team and the additional fire damage she can deal, all with minimal on-field time. Anton isn’t the most meta character, as his rotation is quite slow, but he’s certainly strong enough to see you through most story challenges.
What about more Rupture characters?
ZZZ’s 2.2 banners are fine. They’re fine! Attack characters are hardly plentiful at the moment, and ones who can potentially fit into hybrid support roles like Seed and Orphie seem particularly valuable. The disappointment is that HoYoverse introduced a new attack type and then promptly ignored it for months. If you didn’t get Yixuan during ZZZ 2.0, well, no Rupture for you.
Manato, an A-rank, and Yidhari, an S-rank, are planned for ZZZ 2.3, and since both are Rupture characters, it seems like that baffling trend of not utilizing your new battle mechanic is set to end. That’s nice, but it’s still an oddly indecisive direction compared to how HoYoverse handled new mechanics for Genshin Impact and Honkai Star Rail.
When Dendro turned up in Genshin, the next several banners included at least one Dendro character, and you could get a free 4-star Dendro, Collei, in the Spiral Abyss. Remembrance turned up in HSR at the start of the 3.X patch series, and you got the Remembrance Trailblazer, an excellent support character for more than just Remembrance teams, and a steady stream of characters on that path, including high-profile ones like Castorice and Hyacine. They also quietly introduced zones, a new feature related to Remembrance characters, but not exclusive to them.
Perhaps the muddled vision of ZZZ shouldn’t be too surprising. After all, this is the game that, a few months after launch, HoYoverse overhauled to completely change how TV mode and exploration worked. And while HSR’s battle system benefits from what seems like greater foresight, it took two years before the narrative team crafted a story that didn’t fizzle out after a couple of patches.
Whatever the case, with more Rupture units on the horizon and a vague set of improvements teased for Soldier 0 Anby, perhaps HoYoverse is about to start hitting its stride more confidently with Zenless Zone Zero.